H.S. swimming notes: Ramapo’s Brendan Woo looks golden in last hurrah

Every year at the Bergen Meet of Champions, Ramapo’s Brendan Woo has set out to improve his times. But things have changed for the swimmer now that he’s a senior.

"In the past, I always wanted to set faster times, but as a senior, in my last hurrah, I wanted to just compete with the best kids," said Woo.

Woo finished second in the 50 freestyle Sunday with a time of 21.90 and first in the 100 freestyle with a 47.35. He’s happy with the way he’s improved over his four years, and he’ll bring his talents to Providence, R.I., when he attends Brown University in the fall.

"I was used to being at the bottom, swimming only breast stroke, but now I do everything," said Woo. "I know I’m going to be around a lot of great swimmers [in college], but I can see myself being competitive."

PASCACK GIRLS BUILD ON SUCCESS: Pascack Regional’s girls team finished fourth in the Bergen Meet of Champions, continuing a steady ascent for a program that has been on the rise for the last three-plus seasons.

The team’s seniors, led by Sami Freeman, Liza Peressini, and Ryan Caruth, are trying to become the first class in program history to win league titles in each of their four seasons.

Coach Shawn Buchanan noted that he has big hopes for a program that has had a steady influx of talent several years in a row.

"We’re taking small steps," said Buchanan. "When you get good swimmers coming in every year, it can really start to snowball."

BERGEN TECH STANDOUTS: Five Bergen Tech students entered the Bergen Meet of Champions independently since their school does not have a team. Seniors Michael Cassidy, Nicole Salzano and Jamie Xie, junior Frank Elenio and freshman Larry Guindine represented themselves well.

Cassidy placed second, Xie finished fifth and Guindine 11th in the 200 freestyle. Those three and Elenio placed second in the 200-free relay with a 1:31.35.

"Even though we don’t have a team we can enter since it’s a county meet, and we’re there for each other," said Elenio.

Salzano finished third in the 200 individual medley with a 2:14.09 and fifth in the 100 backstroke with a 1:00.61.

KOENIG BREAKS RECORD: Hackensack junior Casey Koenig finished with a 1:08.96 in the 100 breast stroke at the Bergen meet, finishing fourth and breaking the school record.

"I race my hardest in the breast stroke, and I feel good so far," said Koenig. "It’s a fun meet, [and] a good time to race against good people and competition."

"She’s been great. She’s won almost every event this year, and her only loss was at Northern Highlands," said coach Scott Davis. "She’s also a big part of her relay team. People are motivated by her performance in the pool."